NC Political Connections By News 14 Carolina reporter Tim Boyum
(At my house, I cannot get this channel anymore, as we were forced to give up cable due to poor bandwidth issues and move to the better performing Directv. Sorry Tim.)

Fern Shubert Speaks for UsPublished by admirers of former Senator Fern Shubert. Shubert served the ole' North State well, until stepping down from her office to make a run for Governor in 2004. While she is greatly missed from office, she knows where the "bodies are buried" and is still found digging up the truth.

ARRA News ServiceNews for social, fiscal & national security conservatives who believe in God, family & country. We seek to uphold traditional family values, Republican principles & ideals, limited government, free markets to promote innovation, & individual freedom. The ARRA News Service is an outreach of the Arkansas Republican Assembly.

Crystal Clear ConservativeBlogger Krystal Weeks writes about N. Virginia and DC metro area politics, as well as national issues. Check her out!

Cuba Generation YThis 30-something blogger publishes at great risk to show readers outside Cuba what everyday life is like inside the oppressive, Communist nation. Think you like Communism...read this blog and think again!

Smart Girl PoliticsConservative Women bloggers, and a few men, who are here to refresh you when you are thirsty.

LadyBlogA modern take on traditional women. Classier than tea service. Like Fight Club but with better hygiene. Sightly more aggro than a cucumber sandwich.

The Political BylineOne of my fellow Top Conservatives on Twitter. Check him out! He's not afraid to speak his mind. Based in the Motorcity.

Capital LettersJordan Schrader covers North Carolina government for the Asheville Citizen-Times.

Sister ToldjahNational conservative blogger who tells it like it is. She loves North Carolina and occasionally picks up items from KCC on her blog.

Called 2 ActionCheck out this site, run by Steve Noble. He's a member of the religious right and he tells the truth as he sees it. He calls himself an equal opportunity offender. Check out what he has to say!

NC PoliticsNew Bern native (and your blogger's fellow high school classmate -NBSHS '85) Steve Hale writes from Pitt County about his take on the North Carolina Political scene. Check out his blog and offer up your comments.

Dateline ObamastanCary's John Byrnes writes about national, state, and local politics. He currently serves in the Army National Guard.

Driving With One HandKevin LeCount is apparently driving with his LEFT hand, as this blog is written by my good friend who works for SEANC, the union of the NC State Employees. His wife, Heidi, works at my alma mater, Meredith and are good folks, despite their political leanings. Check them out.

January 30, 2009

LIVE BLOGGING THE RNC Elections -- Congratulations Michael Steele

Live Blogging the RNC elections: Please keep refreshing your browser.

This is a big day for the Republican Party in the United States. Are we going to stay the party of the mainstreamers and the non technical, or are we going to get with the times, and go back to the core values of the founders of our great nation?

Scroll down to keep up with the updates:

For those of you who have access to CSPAN, your blogger urges you to tune in and observe the election of our next national party chairman. There are a number of candidates and this is extremely interesting to this political junkie. FYI.

The candidates are:

Saul AnuzisKen BlackwellKaton DawsonMike DuncanChip Saltzman (dropped out yesterday, after passing out a negative song about Obama with racial overtones.)Michael Steele

UPDATE: All three of North Carolina's National Committee members were just on television and lined up to vote.

According to Brent Woodcox of the North Carolina Republican Party, Chairman Linda Daves and National Committeewoman Dr. Ada Fisher previously announced they had planned to vote for South Carolina's Katon Dawson. Woodcox was unaware of how National Committee man, state Rep. David Lewis, planned to vote.

UPDATE: 12:15 EST Current RNC Chairman Mike Duncan and Michael Steele are the top two vote getters on the first ballot. Your blogger is crushed. She cannot believe that the members of the RNC would return that man for another turn as our RNC chair. Currently, we are guessing that Ken Blackwell will be the first to drop out. As someone stated on Twitter, it is hard to see his followers going to Duncan. Anuzis and Blackwell are the bottom dwellers.

UPDATE: 12:42 EST On second vote, ballots are red. JoAnne Davidson, a who is running current chairman, Mike Duncan's campaign, according to a source, is doing an excelling job running a very fair meeting.

UPDATE: 12:56 Mike Duncan, & former Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele are tied for first at 48 votes each, and Katon Dawson is in second place with 29. Ken Blackwell has moved up to third at 19 votes.

Your blogger expects to see the others to drop out and the negotiating to continue. KCC, along with every other conservative in the country, is praying hard that Mike Duncan is NOT elected. He is part of the problem. The RNC is voting with PAPER BALLOTS which proves why we lost the last election. They know nothing about technology.

UPDATE: 1:15 EST Ballots now being counted. Conservatives nationwide crying for the ouster of Duncan. KCC wants to know WHO in the RNC is supporting him and that those in their states should fight to send those national committee members home.

UPDATE: 1:24 EST Have switched over to the Fox News stream. CSPAN has gone to something else. Guess they don't care enough about conservatives. 3rd vote now happening. Much speculating on how the vote will go down.

UPDATE: 1:55 EST Leading conservatives are worried about Steele winning the post. They say he is part of the Republican "main street" crowd and consider him a "squishy" moderate. Not the conservative your blogger and others love due to stance on gun control. If he wins, he needs to be reminded of 2nd amendment.

Most conservatives are, at this point, rooting for Katon Dawson of SC, and are hoping that Saul Anzis will make a deal to throw his followers to him. They are willing to do anything to block the re-election of Duncan, and the election of Steele. Conservatives want a leader who doesn't know how to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory (Mike Duncan).

However, Dawson has problems, too. He was/is a member of a whites-only country club and many younger voters do not approve of that. That could work against him.

UPDATE: 2:10 EST What is taking the longest is that each member of the RNC must walk up to the podium, graduation style, to drop in their ballots. Seems unorganized to me. If I were an RNC member and had plane reservations, I'd be on the phone about now, cancelling them. Time to make hotel reservations instead!

UPDATE: 2:13 Time to vote again. Gees, this takes forever.

UPDATE 2:19 Duncan addressing group. He withdraws. YES! He notices "winds of change" and he mentions that the "results he wanted" are not there. He says it "was an honor to work with President George W. Bush". Your blogger thanks Mike Duncan for answering the wake-up call and quitting. God bless America! Holy cow!!!!

UPDATE 2:25 With Duncan out, he most certainly has thrown his people to Steele, one source says.

UPDATE: 2:27 Four now in race: Steele, Dawson, Anuzis, and Blackwell. After this ballot, your blogger predicts one more and then KCC thinks the race will be decided.

UPDATE: 2:42 Latest vote total: Dawson 62, Steele 60, Anzuis 31, Blackwell 15. Time for Blackwell and Anzuis to think of getting out and making this a two horse race. Many conservatives are complaining that the GOP needs a Black chairman so we can look like we "care" about minorities. Your blogger thinks that choosing a chairman based on race would be for all the wrong reasons. We should be past race by now.

More soon. RNC is now in a proxy meeting. More soon!

UPDATE: 3:10 Solid conservative Ken Blackwell has dropped out but has endorsed Steele. It's a fight amongst three now. Ballots are being passed out by the folks in the red hats. These ballots are blue. Looks like it could be a victory for Steele and not a true conservative. Your blogger is not happy!

UPDATE: 3:15 Graduation time again. RNC members are walking to the podium one-by-one, in order of their State name, casting their votes. This is probably the final ballot and your blogger is calling it for Michael Steele, fmr Lt. Gov of Maryland. KCC will support the winner and is just happy it is not former RNC Chairman Mike Duncan. We'd have preferred someone more conservative, like Katon Dawson, but KCC has no vote.

Steele is a fantastic speaker and conservatives on Twitter and nationwide are just happy that this is coming to a resolution. He speaks well to different groups so we'll see what he has in store.

UPDATE: 3:20 Balloting over. Ballot counting now.

UPDATE: 3:30 Steele ONE VOTE short of simple majority needed to win! Some good person is holding out. Imagine the king making going on now. VC Jo Anne Davidson says they will be back from recess at 3:43.

Your blogger ought to be able to muscle her son down for a diaper change in that amount of time! :-) He just hates them and is too busy for them.

UPDATE: 3:31 Looks like Saul is dropping out!!! Race down to Steele and Dawson. 6th ballot will be the final one!

UPDATE: 4:01 That last ballot, Steele missed winning outright by six votes, not one. Sorry folks.

UPDATE: 4:09 STEELE WINS OUTRIGHT. Sources tell your blogger that members of the North Carolina delegation were pledged to vote for Katon Dawson on the first ballot and were then going to switch to Michael Steele.

Your blogger hopes to see a better organized Republican Party, nationally. She is thrilled to see Mike Duncan go. We are getting new blood. Steele is popular with the younger members of our party. He's Steele IS now the man to lead our party to victory, and to speak to the former Reagan Democrats. In North Carolina, they were known as "Jessecrats".

Next up, are the other races on the bill. Congratulations Michael Steele, the new Chairman of the Republican National Committee. Liberals be afraid. Be very afraid.

Your blogger thanks North Carolina's members of the RNC: GOP State Chairman Linda Daves, National Committeewoman Dr. Ada Fisher, and National Committeeman state Rep. David Lewis. Lewis is texting KCC now.

Comments

LIVE BLOGGING THE RNC Elections -- Congratulations Michael Steele

Live Blogging the RNC elections: Please keep refreshing your browser.

This is a big day for the Republican Party in the United States. Are we going to stay the party of the mainstreamers and the non technical, or are we going to get with the times, and go back to the core values of the founders of our great nation?

Scroll down to keep up with the updates:

For those of you who have access to CSPAN, your blogger urges you to tune in and observe the election of our next national party chairman. There are a number of candidates and this is extremely interesting to this political junkie. FYI.

The candidates are:

Saul AnuzisKen BlackwellKaton DawsonMike DuncanChip Saltzman (dropped out yesterday, after passing out a negative song about Obama with racial overtones.)Michael Steele

UPDATE: All three of North Carolina's National Committee members were just on television and lined up to vote.

According to Brent Woodcox of the North Carolina Republican Party, Chairman Linda Daves and National Committeewoman Dr. Ada Fisher previously announced they had planned to vote for South Carolina's Katon Dawson. Woodcox was unaware of how National Committee man, state Rep. David Lewis, planned to vote.

UPDATE: 12:15 EST Current RNC Chairman Mike Duncan and Michael Steele are the top two vote getters on the first ballot. Your blogger is crushed. She cannot believe that the members of the RNC would return that man for another turn as our RNC chair. Currently, we are guessing that Ken Blackwell will be the first to drop out. As someone stated on Twitter, it is hard to see his followers going to Duncan. Anuzis and Blackwell are the bottom dwellers.

UPDATE: 12:42 EST On second vote, ballots are red. JoAnne Davidson, a who is running current chairman, Mike Duncan's campaign, according to a source, is doing an excelling job running a very fair meeting.

UPDATE: 12:56 Mike Duncan, & former Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele are tied for first at 48 votes each, and Katon Dawson is in second place with 29. Ken Blackwell has moved up to third at 19 votes.

Your blogger expects to see the others to drop out and the negotiating to continue. KCC, along with every other conservative in the country, is praying hard that Mike Duncan is NOT elected. He is part of the problem. The RNC is voting with PAPER BALLOTS which proves why we lost the last election. They know nothing about technology.

UPDATE: 1:15 EST Ballots now being counted. Conservatives nationwide crying for the ouster of Duncan. KCC wants to know WHO in the RNC is supporting him and that those in their states should fight to send those national committee members home.

UPDATE: 1:24 EST Have switched over to the Fox News stream. CSPAN has gone to something else. Guess they don't care enough about conservatives. 3rd vote now happening. Much speculating on how the vote will go down.

UPDATE: 1:55 EST Leading conservatives are worried about Steele winning the post. They say he is part of the Republican "main street" crowd and consider him a "squishy" moderate. Not the conservative your blogger and others love due to stance on gun control. If he wins, he needs to be reminded of 2nd amendment.

Most conservatives are, at this point, rooting for Katon Dawson of SC, and are hoping that Saul Anzis will make a deal to throw his followers to him. They are willing to do anything to block the re-election of Duncan, and the election of Steele. Conservatives want a leader who doesn't know how to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory (Mike Duncan).

However, Dawson has problems, too. He was/is a member of a whites-only country club and many younger voters do not approve of that. That could work against him.

UPDATE: 2:10 EST What is taking the longest is that each member of the RNC must walk up to the podium, graduation style, to drop in their ballots. Seems unorganized to me. If I were an RNC member and had plane reservations, I'd be on the phone about now, cancelling them. Time to make hotel reservations instead!

UPDATE: 2:13 Time to vote again. Gees, this takes forever.

UPDATE 2:19 Duncan addressing group. He withdraws. YES! He notices "winds of change" and he mentions that the "results he wanted" are not there. He says it "was an honor to work with President George W. Bush". Your blogger thanks Mike Duncan for answering the wake-up call and quitting. God bless America! Holy cow!!!!

UPDATE 2:25 With Duncan out, he most certainly has thrown his people to Steele, one source says.

UPDATE: 2:27 Four now in race: Steele, Dawson, Anuzis, and Blackwell. After this ballot, your blogger predicts one more and then KCC thinks the race will be decided.

UPDATE: 2:42 Latest vote total: Dawson 62, Steele 60, Anzuis 31, Blackwell 15. Time for Blackwell and Anzuis to think of getting out and making this a two horse race. Many conservatives are complaining that the GOP needs a Black chairman so we can look like we "care" about minorities. Your blogger thinks that choosing a chairman based on race would be for all the wrong reasons. We should be past race by now.

More soon. RNC is now in a proxy meeting. More soon!

UPDATE: 3:10 Solid conservative Ken Blackwell has dropped out but has endorsed Steele. It's a fight amongst three now. Ballots are being passed out by the folks in the red hats. These ballots are blue. Looks like it could be a victory for Steele and not a true conservative. Your blogger is not happy!

UPDATE: 3:15 Graduation time again. RNC members are walking to the podium one-by-one, in order of their State name, casting their votes. This is probably the final ballot and your blogger is calling it for Michael Steele, fmr Lt. Gov of Maryland. KCC will support the winner and is just happy it is not former RNC Chairman Mike Duncan. We'd have preferred someone more conservative, like Katon Dawson, but KCC has no vote.

Steele is a fantastic speaker and conservatives on Twitter and nationwide are just happy that this is coming to a resolution. He speaks well to different groups so we'll see what he has in store.

UPDATE: 3:20 Balloting over. Ballot counting now.

UPDATE: 3:30 Steele ONE VOTE short of simple majority needed to win! Some good person is holding out. Imagine the king making going on now. VC Jo Anne Davidson says they will be back from recess at 3:43.

Your blogger ought to be able to muscle her son down for a diaper change in that amount of time! :-) He just hates them and is too busy for them.

UPDATE: 3:31 Looks like Saul is dropping out!!! Race down to Steele and Dawson. 6th ballot will be the final one!

UPDATE: 4:01 That last ballot, Steele missed winning outright by six votes, not one. Sorry folks.

UPDATE: 4:09 STEELE WINS OUTRIGHT. Sources tell your blogger that members of the North Carolina delegation were pledged to vote for Katon Dawson on the first ballot and were then going to switch to Michael Steele.

Your blogger hopes to see a better organized Republican Party, nationally. She is thrilled to see Mike Duncan go. We are getting new blood. Steele is popular with the younger members of our party. He's Steele IS now the man to lead our party to victory, and to speak to the former Reagan Democrats. In North Carolina, they were known as "Jessecrats".

Next up, are the other races on the bill. Congratulations Michael Steele, the new Chairman of the Republican National Committee. Liberals be afraid. Be very afraid.

Your blogger thanks North Carolina's members of the RNC: GOP State Chairman Linda Daves, National Committeewoman Dr. Ada Fisher, and National Committeeman state Rep. David Lewis. Lewis is texting KCC now.